Thailand's Bangkok Airways will double its flights between Bangkok and the central coastal city of Danang from March 1, as the city and neighboring central provinces are preparing to welcome large numbers of travelers from Thailand and elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

Thai tourists pose for a photo at the Datanla tourist site in Dalat City

The carrier currently operates a daily Bangkok-Danang flight, using Airbus A319 aircraft with 144 seats.

Nguyen Son Thuy, director of Indochina Unique Tourist Co., Ltd, said that with the airline’s plan to increase its daily flights, Danang City and other parts of central Vietnam will see a boom in Thai tourist arrivals in the not-too-distant future.

“The number of visitors on a total of eight daily flights from Thailand to Danang City on various carriers has recently surged due to the central region’s attractive tourist destinations and better tourism services,” Thuy said.

Many Thai tourists want to visit Cau Vang (Golden Bridge) at Sun World Ba Na Hills tourist site in Danang, which was named the most popular check-in destination in Vietnam in 2018 at the WeChoice Awards. Others wish to tour Hoi An and Hue’s heritage sites. Specifically, Hoi An Town has become well-known among the Thai people since it was chosen as the location for shooting “Hoi An, I Love you” by a Thai producer.

“As items and products sold at shopping sites and markets in the central region are sought after by Thai people, Thai shoppers arrive in the region in droves,” Thuy added.

Nguyen Duc Quynh, deputy general director of Furama Resort Danang and vice chairman of the Danang Hotel Association, said that Thai and Southeast Asian tourist arrivals in Danang City are on the rise, so the city can diversify its venues and tourist attractions for tourists attending MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) events.

Cao Tri Dung, chairman of Danang Travel Association, said that Southeast Asia ranked third among Vietnam’s five key source markets after the local market and Northeast Asia.

Thai arrivals in Danang City were reported at 20,000 in 2017, putting Thailand in the eighth position among the city’s international source markets, according to statistics. The figure, however, increased threefold to some 60,000 in 2018, pushing the market to fifth place.

The number of Thai travelers to the city is expected to exceed 100,000 this year.

SGT